Labor & Employment
G&M’s Labor and Employment practitioners help clients navigate the ever-evolving landscape of US, state, and local laws and regulations that govern the workplace. They have diverse and in-depth experience in representing clients in workplace matters related to traditional labor and employment law, including but not limited to day-to-day counseling, policy development and implementation, collective bargaining, internal investigations, best practices to avoid litigation and, when necessary, representing clients before state and federal courts and agencies in arbitrations, administrative proceedings, and class and collective action cases.
G&M attorneys pride themselves on understanding the unique, industry-specific statutory, regulatory and competitive pressures their clients face and providing them with practical advice that achieves business needs while ensuing legal compliance.
G&M Advantages
Representative Matters
Practice Leaders
G&M Advantages
G&M Advantages
The members of G&M’s Labor and Employment Law Group have ample experience in traditional labor, employment and equal opportunity matters, representing clients to reach the most successful resolution possible in any given situation. G&M is open to considering (and implementing where appropriate) alternative fee arrangements and hybrid fee structures to align incentives and minimize risk and uncertainty for G&M’s clients.
Labor, Employment and Equal Opportunity Law Services
Labor, Employment and Equal Opportunity Law Services
Labor, Employment and Equal Opportunity Law Services
G&M helps clients develop litigation avoidance strategies through review of human resources data, policy review and revision, analyzing promotion and termination information, and advising on diversity best practices. When litigation is unavoidable, however, G&M’s attorneys handle employment claims from the initial charge stage to trial and through appeal, often obtaining summary judgment or favorable verdicts for our clients at arbitration, in administrative proceedings, and before state and federal courts in class and collective action cases.
Specifically, G&M has litigation expertise in systemic employment and wage and hour litigation. In managing and representing clients in multi-plaintiff, class and collective action cases, litigation before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and under federal and state equal employment laws, and litigation under the Fair Labor Standards Act and state wage and hour laws, G&M works closely with each client to shape a litigation plan consistent with each client’s business objectives and desired outcome.
G&M also represents clients in labor arbitrations and mediations that arise under the National Labor Relations Act and collective bargaining agreements, as well as in unfair labor practice proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). With one of G&M’s attorneys being a former NLRB trial judge, we have extensive knowledge in successfully representing clients before the NLRB during hearings and other proceedings. And when we are not helping clients resolve these labor disputes, we are representing them in negotiations arising under national, regional, and local collective bargaining agreements.
In addition to our litigation services, G&M helps clients meet the complex compliance and human resources challenges in today’s workplace. Our attorneys regularly counsel clients on employment policies and practices, as well as provide training on the proper implementation and enforcement of appropriate policies and counseling practices. Our attorneys have experience assisting employers in handling hiring, discipline, and discharge issues; handling sensitive internal investigations; managing reductions in force; reviewing, auditing, and defending wage and hour issues; and drafting employment policies and contracts, including non-compete and confidentiality agreements. We also routinely write, review, and revise employee handbooks in whole or in part, ensuring that our clients have the necessary remedial measures in place and policies reflecting current legal requirements. Our attorneys craft policies that are culture- and industry-specific, working with clients to find the best policies and procedures for their workplaces to thrive and be continually profitable.
Representative Matters
Representative Experience
Successfully represented a major auto parts retailer where the EEOC filed suit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, alleging that the Defendants violated Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act by denying a former employee a reasonable accommodation and terminating her employment. The case went to trial on a Monday and that Friday, after several hours of deliberation, the federal jury entered a verdict in favor of both Defendants relative to the EEOC’s claims.
Successfully obtained summary judgment in a case brought by a former employee alleging age and sex discrimination by successfully convincing the court that the former employee failed to bring his claims within the six-month period the employee agreed to in his incentive compensation agreement. The court dismissed the case on this basis alone, declining to even address the employee’s claims.
Defended a national insurance company against a plaintiff alleging numerous state and federal law claims, including disability discrimination and medical leave retaliation, successfully arguing that a court should grant summary judgment both on the merits and because plaintiff was barred from bringing claims that were brought in an earlier lawsuit.
Successfully secured dismissal of numerous employment discrimination charges both at the level of the EEOC and state agencies, such as the Illinois Department of Human Rights, on behalf of clients.